Two of those attempts were carried out by the Wagner Group, a Russian paramilitary force, and the third by the Kadyrovites, the personal guard of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov. Harris says US and Poland are united, despite fighter jets episode - CNN ][41], After the Ukrainian media had reported that during the Russo-Ukrainian War Zelenskyy's Kvartal 95 had donated 1 million to the Ukrainian army, some Russian politicians and artists petitioned for a ban on his works in Russia. EXCLUSIVE: Vice President Kamala Harris one-on-one interview on AAPI People. [132] In July 2020, Zelenskyy announced a formal ceasefire with the separatists the more than twentieth such attempt since the war began in 2014. More From Britannica I know that they will not show this appeal of mine on Russian television. U.S. Vice President To Discuss Ukraine, China In Talks With Foreign [196] On 8 March, Zelenskyy expressed willingness to discuss Putin's demands. Born to a Ukrainian Jewish family, Zelenskyy grew up as a native Russian speaker in Kryvyi Rih, a major city of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast in central Ukraine. His party gained 254 of the 424 seats. Vitold Fokin was approved as the first Prime Minister of Ukraine . United States government official. [179][189] During the invasion, Zelenskyy has been reportedly the target of more than a dozen assassination attempts; three were prevented due to tips from Russian FSB employees who opposed the invasion. Detractors noted that elections held in Donbas were unlikely to be free and fair, that the separatists had long driven out most pro-Ukrainian residents out of the region to ensure a pro-Russia majority, and that it would be impossible to ensure Russia kept its end of the agreement. PRESIDENT ZELENSKYY: (As interpreted.) For all other inquiries, please call 202.457.1700. President Obama named Biden the administration's point man on Ukraine in February 2014, after a popular revolution ousted Russia-friendly President Viktor Yanukovych and as Moscow sent. [182], Zelenskyy has gained worldwide recognition as the wartime leader of Ukraine during the Russian invasion; historian Andrew Roberts compared him to Winston Churchill. With regards to same-sex marriage, Zelenskyy cited a provision in the Constitution of Ukraine barring same-sex marriage, as well as a ban on wartime changes to the Constitution, ruling out an introduction of same-sex marriages during the ongoing war. Their son, Kyrylo, was born in January 2013. [262], In a 2014 interview with Komsomolskaya Pravda in Ukraine, Zelenskyy said that he would have liked to pay a visit to Crimea, but would avoid it because "armed people are there". A Ukrainian lawmaker who met with Rudolph W. Giuliani late last year released recordings of private phone calls several years ago between Vice President Joe Biden and Petro Poroshenko, then . Ukrainian vice prime minister asks Elon Musk for Starlink satellites as Critics of Zelenskyy's administration have claimed that, in taking power away from the Ukrainian oligarchs, he has sought to centralize authority and strengthen his personal position. [156], In April 2021, in response to Russian military build-up at the Ukrainian borders, Zelenskyy spoke to American president Joe Biden and urged NATO members to speed up Ukraine's request for membership. [85] One of Zelenskyy's coalition partners, the People's Front, opposed the move and withdrew from the ruling coalition. ", " . [133] Although the ceasefire was frequently violated over the next few years and overall violence remained high, ceasefire violations in 2020 did decrease by over 50 per cent compared to the previous year. [19][36][37] That same year, he created and headed the Kvartal 95 team, which later transformed into the comedy outfit Kvartal 95. He said this on the air of the American TV channel Fox News. This can't be anything but fake as Ukraine does not have a vice president. Volodymyr Oleksandrovych Zelenskyy[a] (also transliterated as Zelensky or Zelenskiy;[b] born 25 January 1978) is a Ukrainian politician and former comedian and actor who has served as the sixth and current president of Ukraine since 2019. WASHINGTON Two Russian billionaires who have managed to dodge US sanctions over Moscow's year-old invasion of Ukraine went property shopping with Hunter Biden, dined with then-Vice . [49] Around the time of his 2019 election, Zelenskyy handed his shares in a key offshore company over to Sergei Shefir, but the two men appear to have made an arrangement for Zelenskyy's family to continue receiving the money from these companies. [122], On 24 March 2021, Zelenskyy signed the Decree 117/2021 approving the "strategy for de-occupation and reintegration of the temporarily occupied territory of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol. What a great honor for me to be able to represent my country before such an august audience. From Ghost of Kyiv to 'crisis actors': Debunking fake - Firstpost ", "How Ukraine's Presidential Race Is Shaping Up", "Comedian faces scrutiny over oligarch ties in Ukraine presidential race", "Volodymyr Zelensky: April 1 an awesome day for a clown to win", "Ukraine media demands access to runoff frontrunner Zelensky", "The World Just Witnessed the First Entirely Virtual Presidential Campaign", "Ukraine election: Why comic Zelenskiy is real threat to Poroshenko", "Crowdsourcer In Chief: Ukrainian Funnyman Takes Unorthodox Path To Top Of Presidential Pack", "Zelensky: Party "Servant of the people" goes into politics", " " " ", "Ukraine elections: actor and comedian poised to win crushing victory", "Ukraine election: Poroshenko attacks Zelensky before runoff", "Rivals in Ukraine's presidential runoff hold bitter debate at sports stadium", "How the Ukraine Scandal Looks in Ukraine", " vs : ", " : , ", " : "", " , ", " ", "Central Election Commission of Ukraine Ukrainian Presidential Election 2019 (first round)", "Ukraine election: Comedian Zelensky wins presidency by landslide", "Election of President of Ukraine 2019 Repeat voting", " ", " ", "Ukraine vaults into unknown after comic elected president", "Joint letter of President Tusk and President Juncker to Volodymyr Zelensky, President-elect of Ukraine Consilium", "Ukraine's New President Vows To Dissolve Parliament As PM, Other Key Officials Resign", "Volodymyr Zelenskyy promised international partners that the world would be proud of Ukraine", "New Ukraine President Zelensky calls snap election", "Zelensky may dissolve parliament despite People's Front withdrawal from coalition expert", "Georgia's Saakashvili has Ukrainian citizenship restored", "UAWire Ukrainian parliament rejects Zelensky's proposal to change election system", " , ", "Quick win for Zelenskiy as Ukraine parliament strips lawmakers' immunity", "Zelensky cancels Independence Day parade on August 24 citing costs", "Zelensky cancels Independence Day military parade, gives money to soldiers | KyivPost Ukraine's Global Voice", "No Independence Day parade to be held this year, Zelensky says", "Bonuses instead of parade: Ukraine's leader takes surprising decision", "Voice of America: Journalists see censorship in Ukraine's proposed media laws", "Journalists See Specter of Censorship in Ukraine's Proposed Media Law", " " ", " . [155] While Zelenskyy was still in the U.S., just after delivering a speech at the United Nations, an assassination attempt was made in Ukraine on Serhiy Shefir, his closest aide. [129] Several Ukrainian nationalist militias and former militias also refused to accept the agreement, including the far-right Azov fighters in the Luhansk region of Donbas. These companies included some that owned expensive London property. [291], Ausichicrinites zelenskyyi, an extinct species of feather star described on 20 July 2022 by a group of Polish paleontologists, is named after Zelenskyy "for his courage and bravery in defending free Ukraine".[304][305]. Presidential Office - Official Website Of The President Of Ukraine Andriy Biletsky, the leader of the far-right National Corps and first commander of Azov, accused Zelenskyy of being disrespectful to army veterans and of acting on behalf of the Kremlin by leaving Ukrainians vulnerable to Russian aggression. ", "Zelenskyy Again Asking Rada To Dismiss Lutsenko And Klimkin, Appoint Prystaiko As Foreign Affairs Minister", "Zelensky appoints his first governors in Lviv, Donetsk, Zakarpattia oblasts", "Volodymyr Zelensky clears the old elite out of parliament", "Oleksiy Honcharuk named prime minister, Cabinet approved", "Ukrainian Parliament Accepts Resignation Of Influential Interior Minister", " ' , : " ", "Zelensky dismisses head of president's office Bohdan, appoints Yermak instead", "Ukrainian president removes PM in government reshuffle", "Hasty government reshuffle sows disquiet at home, abroad", "Speech by President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy at an extraordinary session of the Verkhovna Rada", "Zelensky's approval rating slides to 31% poll", "Zelensky enacts strategy for de-occupation and reintegration of Crimea", "Ukraine conflict: Anger as Zelensky agrees vote deal in east", " ", "Telephone conversation with President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky", "Putin and Zelensky hold first discussion with talks on conflict, prisoner swap", "Thousands protest Ukraine leader's peace plan", "The basis for a peaceful resolution of the war in eastern Ukraine trends at the end of 2019", "Far-right groups protest Ukrainian president's peace plan", "Ukraine tensions: what is the Normandy format and has it achieved anything? Are these people present among you? He promised to bring the salary for military personnel "to the level of NATO standards". [250][251], During his presidential campaign, Zelenskyy said that he supported Ukraine's becoming a member of the European Union and NATO, but he said Ukrainian voters should decide on the country's membership of these two organisations in referendums. [190] While speaking about Ukrainian civilians who were killed by Russian forces, Zelenskyy said:[191]. [34], In August 2014, Zelenskyy spoke out against the intention of the Ukrainian Ministry of Culture to ban Russian artists from Ukraine. [241] Following Putin's announcement of Russia annexing four regions of Ukrainian territory it had seized during its invasion, Zelenskyy announced that Ukraine would not hold peace talks with Russia while Putin was president. 2000 - Graduated from Kyiv National Economic University, with a law degree. But no . [82], Zelenskyy was inaugurated on 20 May 2019. [265], In an interview in December 2018, Zelenskyy stated that as president he would try to end the ongoing war in Donbas by negotiating with Russia. Fox News host Tucker Carlson admitted on Thursday that he was wrong about the possibility of Russia invading Ukraine but blamed the Biden administration and Vice President Kamala Harris for his . [244] When asked what kind of relationship Ukrainians and Ukraine will have with Russia after the war, Zelenskyy replied that "They took too many people, too many lives. In 2015, Zelenskyy became the star of the television series Servant of the People, where he played the role of the president of Ukraine. Opinion | Savaging Vice President Kamala Harris is not a substitute for Symbolic moment today in Munich as Ukraine's President Zelenskyy stood side by side with Vice President Harris just days ahead of what the U.S. says is a planned Russian attack on Ukraine. [92], On 8 July, Zelenskyy ordered the cancellation of the annual Kyiv Independence Day Parade on Maidan Nezalezhnosti, citing costs. [4]:710 His party won a landslide victory in the snap legislative election held shortly after his inauguration as president. The only candidate who finished near the former president, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, finished with only 20 percent of the . [118], In March 2020, Honchurak resigned as prime minister following the leak of an audio recording in which he appeared to belittle Zelenskyy's economic management. [40] In 2018, the romantic comedy Love in the Big City 2 starring Zelenskyy was banned in Ukraine.[why? Our Time in 2011 and with Rzhevsky Versus Napoleon in 2012. [19], In 2008, he starred in the feature film Love in the Big City, and its sequel, Love in the Big City 2. [249] Zelenskyy's election manifesto mentioned tariffs only oncethat money raised from a capital amnesty would go towards "lowering the tariff burden on low-income citizens". Charles Michel, President of the European Council - Consilium 'I am more responsible than brave', "Ukraine still backs Zelenskyy despite slow progress", "Military tactics: Zelensky plays both sides in Ukrainian crisis", "Ukraine war: what are Russia's strategic aims and how effectively are they achieving them? ", "Ukraine-Russia crisis: Ceasefire violations rise at contact line", "OSCE in Donbas reports 55% less ceasefire violations in 2020", " , ", " , , ", " " " ", " , ", Prystaiko about the visit of Zelensky to Oman: When time comes we will explain ( : ), "Zelensky to meet EU officials on first foreign visit", "Ukrainian president to resume exhumation of Poles in Ukraine: report", "Biden Faces Conflict of Interest Questions That Are Being Promoted by Trump and Allies", "The Biden family's strange business history", "Ukrainian President Denies President Trump Pressured Him", "Biden, Zelensky Discuss Energy, Russia, Ukraine's Future With the West", "President Zelensky, First Lady open Ukrainian House in Washington", "Zelensky arrives to Washington to meet Blinken, Granholm, Biden", "Zelensky to meet with Apple CEO in California on Sept 2, visit Silicon Valley, speak at Stanford University", "In California, Zelensky meets with Ukrainians working at Silicon Valley companies", "Zelensky at Stanford: 'Russia's policy is to take, not give', Top Adviser to Ukrainian President Is Targeted in an Assassination Attempt, "Ukraine's Zelensky on frontline as Merkel urges Putin to pull back troops", "Zelensky warns Ukraine 'entirely prepared' if Russia attacks", "Zelenskiy says Ukraine uncovers coup plot involving Russians; Kremlin denies role", "Ukraine's Zelenskiy Says Ready for Russian Escalation, Claims Coup Plot Uncovered", "EU threatens Russia sanctions as NATO backs Ukraine", "Some Ukrainians Are Angry About Washington Ordering Diplomats' Families To Leave The US Embassy", "Volodymyr Zelensky accuses the West of causing 'panic' with warnings of a Russian invasion that hurts the Ukrainian economy", "Ukraine to the world: keep calm and stop spreading panic", "Ukraine crisis: US president Joe Biden tells Zelensky to 'prepare' for Russian invasion", "Ukraine's president told Biden to 'calm down' Russian invasion warnings, saying he was creating unwanted panic: report", "Ukraine is 'longing for peace' says Zelensky at Munich Security Conference", "Full Translation: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's Feb. 23 Speech", "Volodymyr Zelensky's appeal to Russians: 'The people of Ukraine want peace', "London Playbook: BREAKING: Putin declares war Bombs Kyiv Blasts rock major cities", "Ukraine conflict: Russian forces attack from three sides", " ", "Ukrainian president signs decree on general mobilisation of population -Interfax", "Ukraine president orders full military mobilisation", "Putin Unbowed as Russia Presses Ahead With Invasion Toward Kyiv", "U.S. stands ready to evacuate Zelensky, Russia's 'No. As early as October 2018, three months before his campaign announcement and six months before the presidential election, he was already a frontrunner in opinion polls. [78] French president Emmanuel Macron received Zelenskyy at the lyse Palace in Paris on 12 April 2019. [113], In the 21 July 2019 parliamentary election, Zelenskyy's political party, Servant of the People, won the first single-party majority in modern Ukrainian history in parliament, with 43 per cent of the party-list vote. Trump Twists Facts on Biden and Ukraine - FactCheck.org [22][23][24] His grandfather, Semyon (Simon) Ivanovych Zelenskyy, served as an infantryman, reaching the rank of colonel in the Red Army (in the 57th Guards Motor Rifle Division) during World War II;[25][26] Semyon's father and three brothers were killed in the Holocaust. [6][7][8], During his presidential campaign, Zelenskyy promised to end Ukraine's protracted conflict with Russia, and he has attempted to engage in dialogue with Russian president Vladimir Putin.